#ryuuhei

How many days of meticulous planning had led up to this moment? How many times had he replayed this scenario in his head, scrutinizing every plan until he had settled on a series of events in which nothing could go wrong?

And yet, he remained nervous. Of course, it was completely normal for somebody to be nervous in a situation like this-- he was about to officially dedicate the remainder of his Shinigami life to the man he loved. This was to be the happiest day of his life, solidifying his desire to spend eternity with his partner... No big deal, his voice reverberated in his mind mockingly.

He pulled a box of mints from his pockets, quickly ejecting two and popping them in his mouth. How many had he consumed so far? Perhaps a more minty liquid now flowed through his veins instead of blood; it was his way of taking off some of the edge-- those could have been the fiftieth, or the hundredth-- he had no way of telling.

“You’re free to go,” the friendly lady responsible for his appearance smiled, placing a calming hand on his shoulder. She had picked up on his anxiousness -- you’d have to be blind to miss it -- and had tried to keep his thoughts occupied with small-talk... but to no avail. “You look stunning.” And he felt stunning, too.

A heartfelt thank you came from Hiroku’s lips, before he left the room. Bad omens be damned; he just couldn’t stay cooped up alone with this tension. He took a daring peek at the lobby, housing all who had come to witness the sacred bonding of two Souls-- jeez, did they know that many people altogether? Luckily, they seemed to be enjoying themselves without the grooms’ intervention.

Making his way through the back, away from the festivities, he found the door that separated Hiroku from his soon-to-be-husband. He took a deep breath, pressing his back to it as he steeled his mind, trying to wash away his nerves with calm.

“Hey, Ryuuhei... I’m dying out here, you’ll have to come save me,” he called out, continuing to barricade the door with his body. He didn’t want to see the other groom just yet, saving the other’s striking appearance for the ceremony like a fine dessert. “Can’t believe how much work they had to do on me. Must be worse for you, though, what with your hair and all,” he fretted, starting on a nervous spree of rambling. “There are so many people out there, jeez; can’t believe you invited so many-- you social butterfly.” If he were to guess, the ratio would be about three-to-one.

Although he would have loved to bust down the door to speak to Ryuuhei face-to-face, he restrained himself... for now.

日: Just come back alive? How could he ever promise such a thing? They were Shinigami, they both knew that leaving one day could mean he might never return… it was just a part of the job.

Even though he was about to leave, halfway out the door, he stopped to turn to his dear, beloved husband, and slowly walked up to the man he loved, the man Hiroku had sworn to spend the rest of his eternal life with.

“I’ll be back in a fortnight, and not a minute longer,” he promised quietly, bringing his hand up to Ryuuhei’s chip, softly rubbing his husband’s cheek with his thumb. “You know I can take care of myself… I’m more concerned for you, actually; keep out of trouble when I’m gone, hmm?” He tried to flash a wry smile, though he knew it would fall apart at the cracks when scrutinized. 

He hoped that some teasing could sooth Ryuuhei’s concerns, but even Hiroku had trouble shaking off a bad premonition that hung over them both. “I’ll be back before you know it.” Leaning in, he brought their lips together in a chaste and quick kiss.

Jeian: O-Oh, uhm... Well, I could tell you, but it was more my brother’s actions than mine so...

[ Jeian looks at his brother expectantly, then frowns upon seeing his back turned. He sat still and from the looks of it, he wasn’t turning around anytime soon. Fuan turned his head slightly, red eyes glaring first at Jeian, then at their visitor. ]

[ His tail fiddled with the tassle hanging from his necklace as he weighed his options. It wouldn’t do much harm to tell the guy what he did, but... no, he couldn’t bring himself to trust this guy. Not yet. ]